Reporting of medication errors by pediatric nurses

Abstract

Background and objective: Children have a higher risk of being exposed to medication errors and are more prone to harm due to reasons such as differences in their growth and development, and their physiological and psychological characteristics which are different from those of adults. The purpose of this study is to determine pediatric nurses’ attitudes towards reporting of medication errors and causes of not reporting of medication errors and to determine their views on the incidence of medication errors.

Methods: The study was conducted in a Children’s Hospital in the province of Izmir, with the participation of 179 pediatric nurses. To collect the data, two forms were used in the study, socio-demographic questionnaire and Questionnaire for Medication Errors.

Results: While 34.6% (n = 62) of the nurses thought that medication errors never happened in the clinics over the past year. While 94.4% (n = 169) of the participating nurses did not report any medication errors within the past year, 5.6% reported 1-2 times. The highest proportion (75.4%) (n = 135) of the nurses, the reason for not reporting medication errors was the fear of receiving legal punishment.

Conclusions: Reporting medication errors is low level. In conclusion, the main reason for not reporting medication errors was the perception of receiving punishment. Implications for nursing and/or health policy: Education to nurses should be given at regular intervals and in small groups by using case samples. If the managers are to promote reporting, they should eliminate the perception of receiving punishment, and make necessary arrangements to develop non-accusatory culture aiming to learn from the results of reported errors.